Gods and Demons

Titans were powerful beings born within World Souls. As the ultimate embodiment of Arcane power in the universe, they possessed supreme might from birth, unmatched by any other race. Yet these giants born deep within the World Flame Core were kind by nature. If classified by alignment, they would belong to the lawful good side.

After searching for endless ages, Aman'Thul, leader of the Titans, finally found many of his kin within the vast Astral Realm. Following his nature, he decided to unite his people and create an organization that could bring stability and order to the universe. Thus, the Pantheon was born.

The members of this powerful and mysterious organization were all Aman'Thul's equally powerful and mysterious kin. They were:

The King of Gods of the Pantheon, Aman'Thul

The guardian of the Pantheon, Sargeras

The protector of the Pantheon, the Avenger, Aggramar

The master of life and nature, the Life-Binder, Eonar

The world-forger, Khaz'goroth

The keeper of celestial law and knowledge, Norgannon

The lord of the skies, oceans, and storms, the Thunderer, Golganneth

And...

The master of space, the Formless, Vanidak

The addition of these powerful kin made Aman'Thul even stronger. From all he had seen and heard during his search for his people, Aman'Thul realized that evil and chaos were quietly breeding in the corners of the universe, while many worlds within it remained unprepared and steeped in disorder.

Thus, Aman'Thul came to understand just how important order was. After establishing the Pantheon, Aman'Thul continued his search for kin and led his people into the Astral Realm once more, but this time, their actions changed slightly.

Whenever they passed by a world, they first determined whether it harbored a World Soul. Beyond that, the gods of the Pantheon would soothe the enraged elemental beings in every chaotic world. Those disorderly creatures could be found in nearly every corner of the universe.

Then the great world-forger Khaz'goroth would reshape the world's terrain, and Golganneth would form its oceans and clouds. Finally, Eonar, the Life-Binder, would scatter the seeds of countless lifeforms across this newly ordered world. This not only made the world more vibrant, but also helped the World Soul gestating within it mature faster, even giving worlds without World Souls a faint possibility of producing one. Of course, in most cases, the Titans returned empty-handed.

But the lawful good Titans were not discouraged. They swore to preserve and protect every such world, even if none of their sleeping kin lay within it. Thus, they would also bestow power upon the primitive life that had already arisen there, allowing the orderly worlds they had painstakingly created to flourish. Moreover, the Pantheon would place enormous machines upon the surfaces of these worlds. Through these colossal Titan mechanisms, they could monitor the worlds they had created and maintained. Should the evolutionary paths of the creatures in those worlds stray from course, they would intervene without hesitation to set things right.

To better watch over these worlds, Aman'Thul invited the familiar Constellar race, asking them to serve as watchers for these devices and observe the worlds where the Titans had established order. They were to remain alert for any unstable signs that fell beyond control. When necessary, the Constellar race was even granted the authority to activate fail-safe mechanisms, erasing all life on worlds they deemed anomalous and thereby resetting the evolutionary process.

Most Titans were full of confidence, excited and satisfied by the orderly worlds they had established. But Vanidak the Formless, an oddity among the Titans, seemed indifferent to the tasks his brothers and sisters enthusiastically immersed themselves in. Though he had followed Aman'Thul and the others in reshaping world after world, bringing new life and order to them, Vanidak rarely lent a hand. Much less did he bestow his power upon the creatures of those worlds. Instead, he spent every day endlessly studying the "new toy" Khaz'goroth had made for him.

This "new toy," crafted by Khaz'goroth the Shaper from materials taken from deep within an extinguished World Flame Core, with a mysterious orb containing terrible energy provided by Vanidak as its core, could indeed be called a work of art. But that alone could not explain Vanidak's obsession. To the astonishment of the other Titans, ever since receiving this little figure modeled after his own appearance, Vanidak had seemed possessed. He never let it leave his hand, and silver light often flickered in his eyes as he stared at the tiny creation.

"What is wrong with Vanidak? He must have gone mad. I truly regret listening to him and making that thing for him." Khaz'goroth, having just completed the reshaping of a world, looked toward Vanidak during their rest.

"Do not blame yourself, my brother. Vanidak has always been like this. Even I cannot fully see through his actions, but he certainly has not gone mad yet," Aman'Thul consoled him from nearby.

"But he looks as though someone has bewitched his mind." Hearing this, Sargeras could not help speaking up as well. "I even suspect some evil creature has taken control of his thoughts."

"Poor Vanidak. I do not think I shall ever strike him on the head with my staff again. Just look at the mad state he is in," Eonar said from the side.

"My dear Eonar, I think that in some cases, if you struck his head a few more times, he might get better." Norgannon, who had just placed a protective barrier around the newborn world, joined the discussion as well.

"Hey! You venomous snakes who wound others behind their backs, I am not deaf yet!" The subject of their discussion suddenly stopped his usual staring, rose to his feet, and said to the Titans:

"I heard every word, you bastards who harm your own kin!"

"Oh, Vanidak, have you finally awakened from your long nightmare? Can you tell me what exactly you have been doing? What could make someone like you so... quiet?" Norgannon was not angered by the insult and continued asking with great interest.

"Ah, it is nothing major. I merely studied it for a long time and discovered that the time was not right yet. That is all." Vanidak did not answer him directly and simply continued:

"Fine, let me see how far my great brothers have gotten in creating this new world. Does the great Vanidak need to lend a hand?"

"Hmm, the mountains and land are complete. Oh, Golganneth is releasing the oceans. Hmm, I have to say, he really has a lot of water."

"Ah, look at that. It seems there is nothing worth this Titan's effort after all. Oh? There it is. This thing is rather interesting. How did it hide in here? Watch me drag it out!"

With an excited, strange cry from Vanidak, blades sprang from both hands as he slashed forward in a cross, cutting open an intersecting rift. Thick black mist spilled from within, accompanied by a shrill scream. Then Vanidak pulled a diamond-shaped gemstone filled with murky black mist from the rift and tossed it up and down in his hand.

"What is that, Vanidak? It seems full of evil." Norgannon, ever curious about unknown knowledge, was the first to voice the question shared by the other Titans.

"Oh! So even the great and wise Norgannon has something he does not understand. Since you have asked so sincerely, I shall mercifully tell you..."

"It is merely a creature that lives in the shadows, though it is somewhat larger. It poses no threat to us."

"You mean, no threat to us?" Aman'Thul keenly caught the key words in Vanidak's statement. "Then what about the life of a newborn world?"

"Ah, it is not much of a problem. It would probably only take the Constellars restarting the system."

"!!!" The Titans were all shocked by those words. Aman'Thul, the first to react, continued, "That is no small problem. If these things are spread throughout every world we have put in order, then would all our work over these long years not have been in vain?"

"It is not as serious as you imagine, Aman'Thul. These things are not common. I have only seen a few over all this time... Relax. I already dealt with the earlier ones, you simply did not know. Compared to those..."

Vanidak looked into the distance, silver light once again flashing in his eyes.

"Those fellows over there are the real threat. Hmm, that familiar aura of chaos. Sargeras, some old acquaintances have arrived."

Following the direction Vanidak indicated, they hurried to a world the Titans had once visited. The world that had previously been full of life and order had long since lost its former peace. Chaos and destruction filled every inch of land, and all manner of grotesque creatures rampaged madly across it. Everything the Titans had shaped was gradually collapsing beneath this tide of destruction.

"What exactly is this, Vanidak? What are these creatures? How can they be so fallen, so chaotic?" Aman'Thul asked with a solemn expression.

"I believe I can explain, King of Gods." Sargeras spoke first from nearby. "These strange creatures share a single name: demons."

"I dealt with them tens of thousands of years ago, before Vanidak and I returned to the Pantheon. These chaotic creatures have remained unforgettable to this day. No one knows where they came from, but chaos is their nature. They know only destruction all day long. Indeed, they are a great threat to order!"

"You should have seen these fellows before, Aman'Thul," Vanidak interjected. "That piece of meat I fed you..."

"Fine, I think I remember now. It left a deep impression. Now the question is, how should we deal with these chaotic and evil creatures?"

"Of course, we exterminate them all!" Sargeras declared loudly. "I am willing to take on this task."

"I also request to join the demon-purging force, King of Gods." Aggramar, who had barely made his presence known until now, volunteered as well. "My body also yearns for battle!"

Looking at the two kin who had stepped forward, Aman'Thul nodded in satisfaction. He tentatively asked Vanidak, "What about you, my brother? Will you not join this great campaign?"

"Me? Forget it. Demons are not tasty at all. I hate those green fellows."

Aman'Thul was not surprised by the refusal, nor was he angered. Turning to Sargeras and Aggramar, he announced, "Then go, the two greatest warriors of our Pantheon. Eliminate this scum of the universe and restore the order we have created and maintained. Depart!"

"Your will, King of Gods!"